Guardiola lists De Bruyne behind Messi as second greatest player he has coached

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Guardiola lists De Bruyne behind Messi as second greatest player he has coached  19/05/2025  CGA, manchester, UK

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00:00The sort of emotion around Kevin is such a huge game, isn't it?

00:04Maybe it can be positive.

00:06Emotions and something special for all of them, they can do it.

00:10So it can be positive.

00:12Since the decision was made, Pep, about Kevin,

00:15has your relationship with him been affected at all?

00:18Have you been happy with the way he's been and the way he's played?

00:21Yeah, I'm happy with his playing.

00:24The relation is completely the same.

00:27In the summer, how difficult are you going to replace Kevin?

00:34There are players that are really, really difficult to replace.

00:37Really, really difficult for many, many reasons.

00:40Yeah, we know that.

00:42But the season we have done is the season we have done.

00:44And we cannot deny it.

00:46And of course, we have to move forward.

00:48Pep, you've obviously worked with some brilliant passes of the ball

00:53across the clubs you've been at.

00:55But have you ever played with or managed someone who can pass it quite like Kevin?

01:00It's difficult to find.

01:01It's one of the best three I've ever seen.

01:03I've ever played, I've ever dealt with.

01:06Who are the other two?

01:08One is Messi.

01:10Let me think about it.

01:11OK, put Kevin second.

01:14And of the passes and the assists, do you have a favourite one

01:18or one that always comes to mind?

01:20I said Messi is the best I've ever seen.

01:23Because Messi has done it really, really close to the box.

01:26But Kevin is there.

01:28So it's just through the stats, the goals, the assists that they have provided to the team

01:32in the final third, the talent.

01:34Last game, we get two or three passes again in front of the one player in front of the keeper.

01:39That is unique.

01:40It's unique.

01:41That's why I've been one of the best players that this club has done in all history.

01:47And it's a big, big words because I've been a special player.

01:51Jack Grealish's lack of minutes in recent weeks and on Saturday has sort of raised a lot of comment.

02:01I think Alan Shearer came out and said he's got to leave for his own good sort of thing in a podcast today.

02:06I just wondered, do you understand that kind of sentiment?

02:09And is that something you'll discuss with Jack come the end of the season?

02:12No, we didn't talk.

02:13I didn't talk with him.

02:14I'm saying these kind of things when people don't believe it belongs to the agents and the club

02:19and Chik in this case, Hugo as well, both sides.

02:22So if it's going to happen, it's going to happen.

02:24But of course, at the minutes they have to come back to play minutes to start to play again.

02:29That's for sure.

02:30You understand that as an ex-player yourself, presumably the players want minutes, don't they?

02:34But not Jack.

02:35So there is no one player in my locker room.

02:38And I think all the locker rooms around the world that they are happy or they are not happy,

02:42and they put bad faces because players don't play.

02:45I never see that.

02:47So of course, they are unsatisfied, but not just him.

02:49So we're satisfied that Maka, Rico, Kovanovi was a little bit injured

02:54and now they don't want to expose that.

02:57And all the players are unhappy.

03:00And they let you know that they are unhappy.

03:03So it's happening.

03:04So in situations when the team is winning, winning,

03:07they have to figure out that everything happened.

03:11But they are happy.

03:12They are here to play.

03:13And they don't play.

03:14They are unsatisfied.

03:15That is a normal position in all the clubs.

03:17And just to clarify on an earlier question about the penalties.

03:20If you get a penalty in these last two games,

03:22will you have a designated penalty taker?

03:24And will you expect the players to stick to that?

03:26Listen, it was a period in, I don't know, in the first season,

03:29on the second, on the third, I don't know,

03:31missed a lot, a lot of penalties.

03:33I remember the first game in Europe that Sergio was an unbelievable taker.

03:37He missed one or two penalties in one game or something like that.

03:40I never was involved.

03:42The moment, what you feel in that moment is the confidence,

03:46like everything, the body language is everything.

03:48Before you take a free kick or a corner, penalties,

03:54is how, okay, I'm going to deliver this action in the best as possible.

03:57This is the key.

04:00Hi, Pep.

04:01The players have come under a bit of criticism this season.

04:04Sorry?

04:05The players have come in for a bit of criticism this season

04:08with the way the season's gone.

04:10And they are keen to show that, you know,

04:13they are still able to get the results at the highest level.

04:16I don't understand, sorry.

04:18Sorry.

04:19No, sorry.

04:20They got the criticism.

04:21Players.

04:22Sorry?

04:23Others?

04:24Others?

04:25Who are those?

04:26People.

04:27People criticize players?

04:28Yeah.

04:29No.

04:30Are these the kind of weeks, this week,

04:32that you turn to the players and say,

04:34show everyone that you've still got it?

04:36Of course, we have two games here.

04:39We have two games that are still enough to have a World Cup.

04:42But here, don't criticize the players in this country.

04:44No, but as in, you know, from outside,

04:49the players have had more criticism this season.

04:51Yeah, because we don't win.

04:52Yeah.

04:53We don't win.

04:54This is related.

04:55Do you know how much compliment we had

04:57when we won the tribals and quadruples?

04:59Yeah, yeah.

05:00But now everyone's talking about the rebuild.

05:02Now it's related when we don't win.

05:03Some of the new players coming in

05:05and the current players here kind of still have...

05:07But you have to use it.

05:08When you're playing at a level,

05:09I said many times, you know,

05:13if I don't want to get criticized,

05:15I have a business.

05:17Be a journalist, a pundit.

05:21You get criticism?

05:22No, never.

05:23No.

05:24So...

05:25You'd be surprised.

05:26Yeah.

05:27You understand what I mean, you know?

05:29Yeah.

05:30So it's...

05:31Go another.

05:32The players are the same.

05:33So don't want that.

05:34Be a photographer.

05:35Alexi.

05:36Is it a week when you lean on the players

05:41who you know have that experience

05:44of going through these big games again and again?

05:47Yeah, of course.

05:48Of course.

05:49Of course.

05:50But sometimes...

05:51Look at Claudio Echeverri.

05:53Play good, right?

05:54Have three or four chances.

05:56Every time to run the box was a dangerous situation.

05:59Why?

06:00He has not passed.

06:01His mind is clean.

06:03He has not to defend anything,

06:05what he has done in the past.

06:07Maybe in two, three years,

06:08it will be different.

06:09You know?

06:10When everyone arrives, you are clean.

06:12And after that, you demand more, you know, status.

06:16You know?

06:17But you have done.

06:18But done don't exist.

06:20You have done right now.

06:23That's why I play good.

06:24Because it's positive.

06:26For him, it's a gift to be here

06:28and try to prove that he can play in the Premier League.

06:31Will be able to know?

06:32I don't know.

06:33We will be here to help him.

06:34Yeah, we try.

06:35We try.

06:36This is the situation.

06:37Thank you, guys.

06:38Done?

06:40Thank you, guys.

06:41Done?

06:42No.

06:43No.

06:44No.

06:45No.

06:46No.

06:47No.

06:48No.

06:49No.

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